U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,733 issued in the name of Spath et al. discloses a roller direct acting hydraulic valve lifter having a roller and shaft assembly received in recesses in the end of the lifter body. The rollers engage the cams and are rotatably carried by suitable bearing members supported on the axle shafts. The shafts may be press-fit or staked in corresponding bores in the lifter body. The design, while effective at reducing friction between the follower and the cam surface may, in some instances prove difficult to manufacture in that it requires access to the inner ends of the shaft during assembly, sufficient hole length to develop retention strength and resist cracking of the lifter body due to staking stress, and a shaft with a hard center portion, to support the roller and softer end portions to receive the stake. Additionally, rotational fixation of the shaft within the follower body operates to concentrate shaft wear since the shaft is unable to rotate and distribute the effects of such wear over the entire shaft surface. Conventional staking processes may not be applicable due to limited access to the inner shaft end and, in addition, to thin shaft openings in the lifters which require softer shaft ends. The softer shaft end portions limit the retention strength which can be achieved without cracking the lifter body. Ceramic shafts, which are beneficial in terms of friction, resistance to wear and cost, cannot be retained using a conventional shaft staking technique due to the extreme hardness of the material.